Beginning and End
by fatal-flaws
Summary: Bits and pieces of scenes, plus snippets of my own. Quite a few will be Deathly Hallows. Rating K-T. 2: An insight into Severus Snape
1. In The Firelight

"Are we mad?" Hermione's voice cut through the late night silence, the only other sound being that of the flickering flames in the fireplace. Ron tore his gaze from the dark ceiling and looked up at her from the floor. He looked over at Harry before turning back to her and asking "What do you mean?"

"Are we mad, following him here, doing all this?" she asked again in a whisper, gaze fixed on Harry's sleeping figure on the other end of the rug.

Her voice sounded so unsure of herself, so completely different to how she normally was. Ron looked at her carefully, trying to see the expression on her face. It was too dark to make out anything of any real consequence, the firelight only distorting her features more. Eventually, he looked up at the ceiling again. "Maybe."

Hermione smiled a soft, sad smile. Her voice cracked slightly on the next words. "But there's no other way we'd have it, is there?"

Ron closed his eyes. "No; I'd follow him to the ends of the Earth… same as you." It was a statement that was without a doubt true. The bond of their friendship had made it like that; everything they had gone through together only proving how much Harry would do for them, and how much they would do for Harry.

Hermione grinned crookedly. "Besides, what would we do now anyway? It's not like we'd be granted any favours."

"That's about right." muttered Ron, glancing once at the dark lump that was Harry. Something twisted inside him as he thought about the danger his family was in. The danger _he _was in. Silence reigned for a few minutes, and then Hermione's soft voice broke through it.

"I meant it, you know. What I said after Dumbledore's funeral. I'm sticking with him. Until the very end."

"I know. And I will too."

"You promise you'll stay? With him… with me?"

He looked over at her and grabbed the hand that was resting next to her stomach. "I promise. I won't ever leave either of you. Ever."

Hermione smiled, unshed tears glittering in the fire light. She wouldn't be able to express in words how much that promise had meant to her in that moment. A weight had been lifted from her chest at the small oath from the man she loved. She squeezed his hand, and softly whispered, "Good."

And when Harry woke up the next morning, it was to the sight of his two best friends, one sleeping on the couch, the other on the floor, hands inches away from each other.

Months later, when Ron had gone and returned, the trio sat in a tent that smelled of cats in a forest that smelled of pine. Hermione had been watching over the boys working together, thinking hard. looked at Ron and thought about the way he broke his promise and how he had tried to fix it. Without thinking about it, Hermione blurted out, "You lied."

Ron looked up sharply, a look of surprise and sadness on his face. Harry looked up too, but he only had a blank, confused look on his face. It was the first time Hermione had spoken to Ron without anger in her voice since he had come back.

"I'm sorry. I was angry, I wasn't thinking. I just left." said Ron quietly.

Hermione drew her knees up to her chest and furrowed her brow. "You promised you wouldn't. That you would stick by us."

"Until the very end." whispered Ron miserably.

Harry quietly got up from his seat and left the two to their own conversation. He could hear them talking, only making out a few words.

When he returned twenty minutes later, it was to the sight of his two best friends hugging, looking more content than he had seen either of them in a very long time.

_A/N: Hi there, fanficers! This is my first story (OMG, how exciting), so I hope you liked it._

_I may decide to continue this into a series of short one shots- let me know what you think._

_Leave a review!_

_Love,_

_-K_


	2. A Man, Not Stone

_This is based on the scene Deathly Hallows Part 2, right at the beginning, where Snape stands on a parapet looking over the students marching in._

* * *

Some thought him to be a dead man walking, emotionless and cold. A stone. But they were wrong.

Severus Snape was an man who kept his emotions in check. If he didn't, he would be dead faster than he could blink. If he didn't, he would hurt too much to keep on going. There were times of course, when he couldn't. But those moments were few and far between.

He stood now, looking over this dreary, bleak castle. It used to be so full of life and energy, the happiness and laughter overflowing. It used to be his _home_. Now the students marched silently, kept in check by cruel and unfeeling Death Eaters. One of them looked upwards to where he stood, and even from this distance, Snape tried not to flinch at the hate in that one look. It was the same hate directed at the brutal Carrows and the other Death Eaters. He tried his best to forget that he was one of them, and would be for as long as that tattoo was inked into his arm, or until his death. Which ever came first.

He'd have liked to think that once the Dark Lord was defeated, his troubles would be over. But Severus Snape was no simple minded fool. He understood the mistrust, hate and fear there would be, possibly even imprisonment. That is, of course, if he could survive that long. He was not afraid of death, no. In a way, he would welcome it. But he was afraid of what came afterwards. The questions he wanted answers for were the questions there were no answers to.

For so long in his life, Severus Snape had been alone. There had been Lily, of course, but even she was gone to him after such a short time. It's wasn't loneliness that bothered him. It was the deep rooted pain that struck true; the piteous overthrows of unrequited love, the misery of being shunned by his peers, the anger that festered slowly over the years.

As he stared down at the courtyard below, he thought of how high up he was, and how easy it could be to push someone or fall. For a brief flickering moment, a thought whispered into his mind. _Why not make that moment now? End it all, for good?_ It was sweet and seductive, and he considered it for a fraction of a second. He felt himself teeter slightly, but set his jaw and then tossed it aside. There were other things to think of, and he had a job to complete. It was a job he would complete to try and assuage his own guilt.

Perhaps, he thought, perhaps when this final task was done, this final, noble self sacrificing task was over, he would be at peace. Perhaps he could die knowing he had atoned for all his sins, die with rest in his soul.

* * *

_An angsty, broody drabble this time! I love doing this sort of thing, but I never get much of an opportunity. _

_Anyway, tell me what you think! Reviews are love :P_

_Afore mentioned love forthwith,_

_-K_


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